Ferb's Lucky Clover Pin

Feb 24, 2012

Leave it to Ferb to deliver a charming Saint Patrick's Day greeting without ever uttering a word. Inspired by young Fletcher's ingenuity, this whimsical pin is certain to have Irish eyes smiling. The directions here are for making the pin from polymer clay, but you can also use the template pieces to create one from paper -- just glue the pieces together and use a fine-tipped marker to draw on the eye pupils and grin.

You'll need:

• Template for Ferb's Lucky Clover Pin
• Scissors
• Polymer clay (green, skin tone, white, and black)
• Disposable kitchen gloves (to wear while working with the clay)
• Wax paper
• Aluminum foil
• Clay rolling tool, disposable plastic knife, and baking pan no longer used for cooking*
• Tacky glue
• Toothpick
• Clay or glue sealer and paintbrush (optional)
• 1-inch bar pin (check the jewelry section of the craft store)

*Note: When working with polymer clay, be sure to use only utensils and pans that are not used for food preparation

1. Print the template and cut out the head and shirt pieces.

2. Knead the clay until it is soft and flexible enough to work with easily.

3. Individually roll out hunks of green and skin tone clay to about 3/16-inch thickness. Use the template pieces and a plastic knife to cut the head and shirt pieces from the clay. Taper the very bottom of the neck, as shown. Then place the upper edge of the shirt on top, gently pressing down to stick the two pieces together.

4. For the eyes, roll two 1/4-inch balls of white clay and two tiny dots of black clay. Roll a bit of black clay into a thin grin shape about 3/8 inch long and about the thickness of a sprinkle (the kind that goes on ice cream).

5. Gently flatten the white clay balls into disks, one about ½ inch wide and the other slightly smaller (you can also use the template as a guide). Overlap the eyes slightly with the smaller one on top. Then place the tiny black dots on the white disks and gently flatten them so that they stick in place and resemble pupils.

6. For Ferb's clover hair, roll four balls of green clay, varying them from 3/8 to ¼ inch in diameter. Arrange them as shown, adding a tiny tail of green clay for the clover stem. Gently flatten the balls to create the leaves, shaping them roughly as shown on the template. Use the plastic knife to score the center of each leaf.

7. Gently press the clover hair, eyes, and mouth in place on the head.

8. Bake the assembled Ferb pin according to the clay manufacturer's directions. Then allow the baked clay to cool completely. If any of the pieces are loose, use tacky glue (applied with the tip of a toothpick) to secure them. Once the pieces are firmly attached, you can coat the pin, front and back), with one or more applications of sealer if you like.

9. Finally, glue the bar pin to the back of the pin. When the glue is thoroughly dry, the pin is ready to wear.